HK99096A - The use of vanilloids for the manufacture of a medicament for treating herpes simplex infections - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides methods of treating or preventing herpes simplex infections in humans and lower animals by treatment with natural and synthetic vanilloid compounds, and the pharmaceutically-acceptable salts and amides thereof, having the general structure: <CHEM> n = 0 or 1; the -W-X- moiety is selected from -C(O)NH-, -C(S)NH-, -S(0)2NH-, -NHC(O)O-, -NHC(S)O-, -NHC(O)NH-, -NHC(S)NH-, -C(O)O-, -C(O)S- and -C(O)N(R)-, wherein either available bond of the -W-X-moiety may be bonded to the -R moiety, with the other bond being attached to the benzyl carbon atom, or directly attached to the benzene ring; the -R<1> moiety is selected from hydrogen, hydroxy, alkyl esters of hydroxy having from about 1 to about 5 carbon atoms, alkyl having from about 1 to about 5 carbon atoms, and alkoxy having from about 1 to about 5 carbon atoms; the -Z moiety is selected from hydrogen, hydroxy and methoxy; the -Y- moiety is selected from -O-, -S-, -NH-, -OC(O)-, -OSO3=- and -OPO3=-; the -V moiety is selected from hydrogen, short chain alkyl, and -CR<2>2-CR<2>2-NH2; the -R<2> moieties are each independently selected from hydrogen, halogen, unsubstituted or substituted alkyl having from about 1 to about 6 carbon atoms, substituted or unsubstituted aryl, and carboxylate, or two -R<2> moieties are covalently bonded to form a substituted or unsubstituted alkyl or heteroalkyl ring having from about 3 to about 8 atoms in the ring including from 0 to about 3 heteroatoms; and the -R moiety is a C2-C24 alkyl moiety which may be straight, branched or cyclic chain and may be saturated, monounsaturated, or polyunsaturated, substituted or unsubstituted, or two -R moieties are covalently bonded to form a substituted or unsubstituted alkyl ring having from about 2 to about 14 carbon atoms in the ring.